How's Your Employer/Industry Doing? AND Official Raise/Bonus Prediction Thread

Just looking to take the Hos economic temperature.

We're plugging along, neither up nor down over last year.  Serious, serious attention to operating expenses, though -- even capital expenditures.  Happily, no one's pressed me to slow down my profligate spending.  Yet.  A few people have been tasked with tracking the time spent on various matters through their days.  Not so much to see which customers are commandeering them, we cynically think, but to see who's working hard and who's maybe a little expendable.  I haven't had that task come down my chain of command yet, either.

Overall, I'm not nervous, but I'm keeping close watch nonetheless.  I'm fairly well plugged in to the network here (I'm not really in any one department or functional group, so I can float among them and hear stuff from everyone), which is helpful.  You?



On the raise/bonus front, my predictions are: 3.47% raise, 5.21% bonus.

Morgues, Bars, and outpatient MRI imaging centers.


The downside is, not only am I not getting a raise, a month ago I had my pay rate decreased.  May take at least a few years to get back to that point.

So I got that goin' for me.

We recently laid off about 10 employees.  They were all out of towners.  They were  offered the opportunity to stay on if they could relocate to our corporate location.  All declined.

Raise, probably 3%, and 6-8% bonus.

Stock price is half what it was a year ago. The company is trying to save money anywhere and everywhere it can. Plants are shutting down for Christmas. Everyone in our plant is being asked to take 5 days vacation. We have already taken 3 weeks mandatory time off this year. There will be no raises. We are expecting to get between 7% and 8% bonus still.

Overall I am not too worried about my job or anyone else in our plant. However no one should be careless. Our company is pretty big and we still have a strong cash flow so no worries yet of anything big. Especially where I am at as we are one of the cash cows of the company.

As an overall comment the General Insurance Industry here is reasonably robust due to the high degree of Regulatory Influence and Compliance, however most companys' ROE has taken a battering as a result of the current economic climate. Subsequently profit forecasts for F09 have been revised, even though the domestic economy is still relatively insulated from the rest of the world.

Certainly Climate Change and other associated emerging risks are having an impact on Large Single Losses and Catatsrophe Claims and this is reflected by Re-Insurance Companies reviewing how they invest their capital which has a flow on effect in respect to the cost of Re-Insurance and associated exchange commissions. Re-insurance Treaty negotioations have therefore become a little more involved.

At a micro level we've been able to acheive an 8% growth in GWP as a State to about $140M GWP, partly due to some acquisitions.

Even though our total loss ratio has increased, the combined operating ratio remains steady.

Suffice to say I've been able to acheive a 20% Bonus and 5% CPI salary increase.

 

I'll pretty much echo twoiron's comments.  My insurance company is doing well.  Although 6 months ago this was going to be our best year ever.  Now it is just going to be a good year.  Our investment income being the major cause for the lower projections.  People are still buying insurance products so sales have done well.  We also have a law suit pending where we have 10 million tied up in limbo so we can't take the income tax hit just the loss in extra reserves.  Fortunately, my area does the financial reporting and what not so I know the numbers as soon as the bosses do. 

Still in line for close to a 20% bonus.  Could have been 30% if we did as projected early in the year.  My raise will be around 5% as usual.  Overall I can't complain other than the fact my job is boring as hell. 

The firm I work for is just fine, but we are looking at limiting spending for next year.  Hiring has slowed to an almost freeze, but no layoffs.  Our bonuses are handled on a trimester basis so its hard to compare to X% annually.  Last trimester it was down from the previous one, the next looks like a 'no bonus' trimester at this point.  But I treat bonuses as they should be treated; a bonus - I do not plan for them and am therefore not affected when they are smaller or go awol.

We had ambitious plans to build 5 new buildings (6 to 9 floor, large office buildings) in three years, starting last year.  We are now considering stopping at 3 (one just finished, 2 are still being built) until we see where we are in 12 months.  But again, no layoffs or downsizing likely.  We execute a business model that can sustain down markets - its part of our conservative investment strategy charm.

Oh - I had my annual review last month - a paltry 2.x% raise (as I'm already well exceeding the mid-point for my position).  Oh well, paychecks are still coming in - that's plenty success right now.  One of the advantages of working for the man - consistancy.

Glad to hear it!  I must have missed the 'I got a job' thread.  The silly season had me only visiting occasionally.